Frightening story proves you need to anchor all your furniture to your walls

Frightening story proves you need to anchor all your furniture to your walls

Not just inexpensive furniture needs to be secured

Share

Shares

Copy Link

{copyShortcut} to copy
Link copied!

Updated: 4:06 PM EDT Mar 14, 2019

Hide TranscriptShow Transcript

WEBVTT SAN FRANCISCO PAID THE LOWEST AT $11. THAT IS FOR THE BIG CITIES. TEO: YOU MAY NOT REALIZE YOUR TV AND THE FURNITURE IT SITS ON CAN BE CITY -- PRETTY DANGEROUS, CAN TIP OVER, AND KEN INJURE OR -- CAN INJURE OR KILL CHILDREN. LISA: MORE THAN 260 CHILDREN HAVE DIED FROM TVS TIPPING OVER. CONSUMER REPORTS LOOKED INTO HOW YOU CAN MAKE YOUR ENTERTAINMENT CENTER SAFER. SYLVIA SANTIAGO LOST HER DAUGHTER WHEN HER TODDLER CRAWLED INTO THE NEXT ROOM. THE NEXT THING I HEARD, I HEARD THE TV COMING DOWN. I PICKED IT UP AND JUST THREW IT. LISA: BUT IT WAS TOO LATE, SHE DIED AT THE HOSPITAL ONE WEEK LATER. CONSUMER REPORTS WARNS ABOUT PUTTING A TV ON TOP OF FURNITURE WHERE IT COULD BE TIPPED OVER. HERE YOU SEE A SIMULATION OF A TODDLER CLIMBING DRAWERS. THE NEWER AND LARGER FLAT-PANEL TVS CAN BE A DANGER. LISA: NEWER TVS ARE LIGHTER, BUT AS THEY GET LIGHTER, THEIR SIZE INCREASES, AND IT MAY NO LONGER FIT YOUR STAND. THIS FLATSCREEN CAN BE STRAPPED ONTO THE MEDIA CONSUL. MAKE SURE THE FURNITURE IS APPROPRIATE FOR THE SIZE AND WEIGHT OF THE TV AND PLACE THE TV AS FAR BACK YOU CAN ON THE STAND. IF YOU ARE PUTTING A NEW TV ON AN OLD STAND, MAKE SURE THE LEGS DO NOT EXTEND OVER THE EDGES, LIKE THIS ONE DOES. LISA: SHE SAYS SHE HOPES OTHER FAMILIES NEVER GO THROUGH WHAT HER FAMILY HAD. I NOW HAVE A TWO-YEAR-OLD SON WHO WILL NEVER KNOW WHO HIS SISTER IS. TRACK YOUR FURNITURE DOWN. -- STRAP YOUR FURNITURE DOWN. LISA: IF YOU HAVE SMALL KIDS

Advertisement

Frightening story proves you need to anchor all your furniture to your walls

We've all heard the horror stories of furniture being recalled after it falls and injures children. Following one toddler's death from a falling Malm dresser in 2017, Ikea issued refunds and provided free anchoring kits for the piece. But, as House Beautiful's editorial director recently learned, this isn't just a danger with cheaper, lightweight furniture. Joanna Saltz's 5 1/2 year old daughter, Everett, had a scary experience when her sturdy dresser fell over last week. "I sent her up to her room to get dressed, which she does all the time, and she decided that she wanted to wear a dress and she needed tights with it," said Scott Saltz, Joanna's husband and Everett's father.To reach the tights, which were in the top of her six-drawer dresser, Everett perched on a lower drawer. "There’s a stool in her room, which she usually uses, but I guess she decided it would be faster to climb up, so she started to step on one of the drawers," said Scott. Immediately, though, the piece pitched forward. Luckily, Everett jumped out of the way and the dresser just grazed her hip, leaving a bruise — and quite a scare, of course. "The dresser fell across the whole room and hit her bed," said Scott. "Thankfully, she wasn't really trapped." Everett's parents were shocked, largely because they'd believed a sturdy, well-made piece of furniture wouldn't bear this risk."We didn't anchor it because we felt like it was a sturdy piece of furniture," said Joanna. "We thought, 'This isn’t an Ikea piece. It’ll stay upright!,' which is, I’m sure, what everyone says right before it topples over." It's easy to fall into that false sense of security, but tip-over accidents are more common than you might think: One child dies every two weeks due to furniture or other top-heavy appliances falling on them, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. But don't be intimidated by the process of anchoring furniture.It is actually pretty straightforward. Essentially, you're screwing a bracket into the dresser, TV or appliance in question and screwing another into the wall — right into the stud. A small cable connects the two, helping prevent the item from tipping over. Look for a kit with nylon webbing or a braided steel cable, Consumer Reports recommends, and use a wood screw that's at least 2 inches long in the wall, so it's extra secure. It may be extra work, but it's absolutely worth it.

We've all heard the horror stories of furniture being recalled after it falls and injures children. Following one toddler's death from a falling Malm dresser in 2017, Ikea issued refunds and provided free anchoring kits for the piece. But, as House Beautiful's editorial director recently learned, this isn't just a danger with cheaper, lightweight furniture.

Joanna Saltz's 5 1/2 year old daughter, Everett, had a scary experience when her sturdy dresser fell over last week. "I sent her up to her room to get dressed, which she does all the time, and she decided that she wanted to wear a dress and she needed tights with it," said Scott Saltz, Joanna's husband and Everett's father.

Advertisement

Related Content

To reach the tights, which were in the top of her six-drawer dresser, Everett perched on a lower drawer. "There’s a stool in her room, which she usually uses, but I guess she decided it would be faster to climb up, so she started to step on one of the drawers," said Scott.

Immediately, though, the piece pitched forward. Luckily, Everett jumped out of the way and the dresser just grazed her hip, leaving a bruise — and quite a scare, of course.

"The dresser fell across the whole room and hit her bed," said Scott. "Thankfully, she wasn't really trapped."

"We didn't anchor it because we felt like it was a sturdy piece of furniture," said Joanna. "We thought, 'This isn’t an Ikea piece. It’ll stay upright!,' which is, I’m sure, what everyone says right before it topples over."

It's easy to fall into that false sense of security, but tip-over accidents are more common than you might think: One child dies every two weeks due to furniture or other top-heavy appliances falling on them, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

But don't be intimidated by the process of anchoring furniture.It is actually pretty straightforward. Essentially, you're screwing a bracket into the dresser, TV or appliance in question and screwing another into the wall — right into the stud. A small cable connects the two, helping prevent the item from tipping over. Look for a kit with nylon webbing or a braided steel cable, Consumer Reports recommends, and use a wood screw that's at least 2 inches long in the wall, so it's extra secure. It may be extra work, but it's absolutely worth it.